New Narnia Book II: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
by maddie-babz1993
Summary: SEQUEL TO NEW NARNIA: The Pevensie's and Company set off on the Dawn Treader, headed to the Utter East and the locations of the 7 Lost Lords. With adventure, romance, a special guest, and lots of Suspian goodness... Susan/Caspian Suspian Peter/OC
1. Prolouge

**A/N: Well, here it is! The prologue of the sequel to _New Narnia_! I hope you all like it, it features the 'special guest' mentioned in the summary... and we get to see what happened to the Pevensie's parents now that they're staying in Narnia. Longer A/N ramble at the end ;) Oh, and to understand ANYTHING that is happening in this story, you MUST have read my original story, _New Narnia_. Otherwise, this isn't going to make a LICK of sense.  
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**MASS DISCLAIMER: This is the only disclaimer I'm doing for the WHOLE story, so lemme say this now... I DO NOT own the Chronicles of Narnia, C.S. Lewis and his estate does. I'm not gaining anything from the publication of this story, just the satisfaction of having Susan and Caspian stay together :) Me no own, you know sue!**

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><p>There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it. That is, unless you're speaking with his cousins, the four Pevensie children. They would insist he deserved much, much worse. However, the Pevensie children had been missing for the better part of a year, and Eustace was more than happy to be rid of them. Though, it was upsetting that their disappearance was affecting his life so greatly. His mother, Alberta, was constantly over at her sister Helen's house, consoling her. With her husband away working in America, and her four 'precious' children missing, she was a total wreck. That left Eustace alone with his father most of the time. While Harold was a mostly agreeable man, he wasn't a very active father, mostly leaving Eustace to his own devices. And this, in turn, lead to Eustace being very, very bored almost all of the time. And this boredom he blamed completely on the Pevensie's, no questions asked.<p>

And it was thanks to this spectacular boredom that Eustace found himself in the spare bedroom of his home, on the one year and one month anniversary of his cousins disappearance from the train station, glaring at the ugliest painting in the entire world. It had been a gift for his mother from a lady she didn't want to upset, but Alberta hated the picture as much as Eustace did. So, they had all decided to stick it up in the tiny back guest room, to appeal the lady, but also so they wouldn't have to look at the hideous thing.

Eustace thought back to the last time his cousins had visited, just after they had returned from an old professors house in the country. They had been staying there so the could be 'safe' during the German air-raids, and everyone always said the four children had come back changed. They were closer to one another, and acted like they were grown ups, rather than children. And it antagonized Eustace to no end. He had found the four of them crowded into this back room one day during their last visit, talking about fairytales and places that didn't exist. Narnia, how ridiculous! There was no such place as Narnia, Eustace would know. He read many books about facts and logic, and never had he even read that there was a fairytale about a place called Narnia. His cousins were so stupid. He didn't miss them at all, not even a little…

However, this mentality did not explain why Eustace was sitting in the guest room, staring at the painting they had all liked so much. They spoke of how it reminded them of _their_ ship, the _Splendor Hyaline_, which of course, didn't exist. They didn't have a sailing ship, how could they? It was preposterous. Though, according to them, _their_ ship didn't have a purple sail like the one depicted in the painting. Eustace snorted at the memory. A ship with a purple sail, or any color other than white, really, was completely ridiculous.

Eustace stood up from the little bed, preparing to leave the room. The painting was making him sick, he could almost smell the dirty slat water the ship was sailing on. Glancing at the painting a last time, Eustace had to do a double take. He could have _sworn_ the water in the picture was moving. Moving closer, he was completely sure he had gone mad, because the painting had started to leak. A painting, leaking! He'd been thinking of his cousins far too much. He was about to turn to leave, when the painting started to positively gush water, causing Eustace to sputter and spit, attempting to get the fowl-tasting seawater out of his mouth. In an attempt to remove the painting from the wall, Eustace accidentally knocked it to the floor. The spare room quickly filled with cold seawater, and Eustace found himself kicking with all his might to the surface…

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><p><strong>AN: Well, here we go again! I'm starting to think maybe I should have given myself a break between stories... NAH! This is WAYY too much fun to stop doing! The first 'official' chapter will bring us up-to-date on what our favorite family has been up to since the _New Narnia_ epilogue... BTW, it's been 2 years since the epilogue, 3 years since Su and Cas left on their honeymoon. And in case you've been under a rock or something, Susan and Caspian have been married 3 years (no Rilian yet, sorry guys!) and Peter and Aliyah have been married 2 years. I'll get around to writing their wedding eventually, hahaha. So, what do we think? Excited for the rest of the story? Send me a review, let me know!  
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	2. Preparations

**A/N: Yay! I finished the fist chapter! FINALLY! It really just didn't want to be written, ugh. So, this lovely chappie is just bringing us up-to-date on what our favorite royal family has been up to, and them embarking on the voyage! It's technically just filler until chapter 2 (which will chronicle the introduction of Eustace to the main storyline), but I hope you all enjoy it none-the-less!**

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><p>"Caspian? Caspian…? Oh, Edmund. Have you seen Caspian? I've been looking everywhere." Susan asked, running into her younger brother in one of the marble hallways of Cair Paravel. He raised an eyebrow at her. Despite him having matured greatly in the past three years, a good opportunity for a pun never escaped the Just King.<p>

"Why? Did you lose him? He'd be pretty hard to misplace, I'd think. He's kind of… big. And there. Can't really miss that accent either…" he replied, and Susan gave him a shove.

"Stuff it, Edmund. He's been putting off packing his things, and I'm not doing it for him. He's 22 years old, he can pack his own trunk for a trip." she said, and Edmund started laughing.

"You sound like mum. Are you sure you're still not pregnant?" he teased, and Susan stuck her tongue out at him.

"No, Edmund. And if I was, I wouldn't tell you. The jokes about our… intimate life would be endless." she replied, turning to leave. Edmund followed her.

"Well, I suppose it's for the best. Wouldn't want you pregnant during a trip across the Eastern Ocean. Never know when we'll find the next spit of land." he remarked, and Susan sighed.

"I know. I just… Caspian and I have been trying for a baby for ages, and it's just not happening." she complained, and Edmund made a gagging sound.

"I could have gone my whole life not knowing that, thanks Su." he said, and his older sister laughed at his expense.

"You're the one begging me for a nephew, and besides, the rate at which Amanda's letters are arriving, you'll be thinking about weddings and babies yourself, all in good time." Susan replied, and Edmund blushed bright red.

"No idea what you're talking about…" he grumbled, and Susan laughed again.

"Please. Whose room does the mail come to? Oh, that's right, the High King and Queens. And who are they? Oh, right, me and Caspian. We see all the letters before they find their way to the breakfast table. There's one from Amanda almost every other day. You're going to kill that griffin, overworking it like that." she teased, and Edmund gave her a playful shove.

"I thought we were looking for _your_ irresponsible husband. We're leaving tomorrow morning, and he still hasn't packed? Typical Cas, leaves everything to the last minute." Edmund replied, and Susan let him off the hook. For now. They were spending at least 6 months at sea together, there'd be plenty of time to tease him about his lady 'friend'.

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><p>Meanwhile, a fifteen minute horse ride away from the sea-side castle, the missing King in question was assisting with the final preparations of his ship for her maiden voyage. Caspian was conversing with his chosen captain, Drinian, while the men around him loaded the ship with supplies they would need for their voyage. The <em>Dawn Treader<em> was the finest vessel Narnia had seen since the days of the _Splendor Hyaline_, and promised to be just as fast. Caspian couldn't have been prouder of it. The designs were all his own (with a little help from his wife and family), and he selected the name himself. He thought it fitting, seeing as they were sailing east, the direction the sun rose, always looking into the dawn.

"Your Majesty? Your Majesty!" Drinian said, waving a hand in front of Caspian's face. He blinked a few times quickly, shaking his head and turning his attention back to the captain.

"Sorry Drinian, lost in thought. What was that?" he asked, giving the captain a sheepish smile. Caspian may be the king of Narnia, but he was also the king of being distracted by the smallest of things. Drinian sighed at him, and continued.

"I was _trying_ to ask you when you expected your personal effects to be brought onto the ship. We need to make sure we're not over our weight capacity." Caspian nodded thoughtfully for a moment, then froze.

"Oh, damn. I told Susan I'd pack my things up today. _**Damn it!**_ Drinian, I need to go, or my wife is going to kill me, and there won't be any voyage at all." Caspian said quickly, running off towards where he had Destrier tied up. Drinian followed him, laughing.

"Alright, your Majesty. Perhaps you'll know… later today. Give the High Queen my best." he said, holding back more laughter as he watched Caspian scrambled up onto his horse as fast as he could. The High King of New gave his captain a hasty wave, and urged his horse forward, hoping Susan wasn't too mad at him when he arrived home…

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><p>"Now, you're sure? You can still change your mind, you know."<p>

"I'm sure. My wife hates the water, and I get seasick almost as easily as you do. Besides, there are six of us. It makes no sense to send all six of Narnia's monarchs off on a sea voyage. Someone should stay behind and run the country."

"I know, I know, but we'll miss you so much! Whatever will you do without us?" Lucy whined to her older brother. Peter snickered.

"Live in peace. Edmund won't be around." he replied, and he and Lucy burst out laughing. The oldest and youngest Pevensie siblings were outside, basking in the sun on a bench in the apple orchards of Cair Paravel. Lucy had been trying to get Peter to agree to come with her, Edmund, Susan and Caspian on their voyage, but the Magnificent King was hearing nothing of it. His beloved wife of almost two years was petrified of water (though, he had managed to get her to wade in up to her waist), so she had flat-out refused to go. There was no way he was leaving her behind, and besides, he wasn't all that fond of ships.

"Alright, you have me there. But we will miss you terribly." Lucy replied, and Peter gave his baby sister a hug.

"You'll be back before you know it, with the lost Lords, and lots of exciting stories to tell Ali and me. All we'll have are boring stories about what we did here while you were away." Peter consoled, and Lucy laughed. They both paused when there heard footsteps approaching.

"Oh, there you are. I've been looking everywhere." came the voice of the Queen Consort of Narnia. Peter's face broke out into a radiant smile upon seeing his wife.

"Looking for me? Why ever were you doing that?" he asked, standing up to embrace her. Aliyah chuckled.

"I'm supposed to ask you if you have any idea where Caspian is. Susan and Edmund have been looking everywhere for him." she replied, and Peter laughed.

"She's going to kill him. He left for the shipyard first thing after breakfast. He still hasn't packed, has he?" Peter asked, and Ali nodded.

"Nope, and Susan says she refuses to do it for him. At this rate, Caspian is going to be wearing Lucy's clothing, since there's no way Su is lending him any of hers." she said, and Peter snickered.

"Last time I checked, both those girls were bringing about ten sets of men's clothes, since, in the words of Susan, 'a dress would be most impractical to wear on an exploratory voyage to the Utter East. Pants are much more practical'. Su is literally the only girl I know who doesn't take every opportunity to wear a fancy dress. She'd probably wear her beat up battle dress all day if she could, she loves that thing." Peter said, shaking his head a few times. Lucy snickered.

"Well, you know Su. She's not like other girls." the Little Queen (though, one wouldn't be able to call her that much longer) said, and Aliyah nodded thoughtfully.

"Neither are you Lu." she said, and Lucy grinned.

"Different and proud. Now, if you love-birds will excuse me, I need to go pack the last of my things. According to Su, we're sending our personal effects off to the shipyard around 2 o'clock. I'd rather not face her wrath today, I'd much rather enjoy the spectacle of her shouting at Caspian." she said, hopping up from the bench. Peter snorted.

"Like Susan would ever yell at him. She's only ever been upset with him once, and that was when he almost accidentally brought the White Witch back. It's almost completely impossible for her to actually be mad at him. She's probably packed half his things by now." the Magnificent King said, snickering. Lucy rolled her eyes at her big brother, and went on her way. Once she was out of sight, Peter sighed, and kissed his wife. Aliyah chuckled when he pulled away, after several minutes of heated kissing.

"I still don't know why you continually refuse to show affection to me in front of Lucy. It's not like she hasn't seen kissing before; Susan and Caspian hold nothing back some days. Especially when you drag us all to the beach." she commented and Peter fidgeted uncomfortably.

"I just… like to think Lu's still 11 years old, and thinks kissing is gross. Not kissing you, my stunningly beautiful and irresistible wife, in front of her helps me keep the illusion up a little longer." he confessed, and Ali sighed, placing a hand on one side of her husbands face.

"She'll always be your little Lucy, Peter, no matter how old she gets. Come, I have a feeling Caspian remembered what he was forgetting to do, and will be home soon. I'm sure you and Edmund would enjoy watching him pack his things. Ed will certainly have several things to make fun of." Aliyah said, taking her husband by the hand and leading him up to the castle. Peter smiled contentedly, more than happy to follow her to wherever she wanted to go, no matter where it was.

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><p>"I said I was sorry. You know I forget things, dearest."<p>

"I know, and I wasn't even mad at you. But that doesn't mean I'm helping. I packed my own trunk, you can pack yours. You're the oldest out of all of us."

"Well, that is a blatant lie. Last time I checked, you were 1300 years older than me, my darling wife."

"Watch your tongue. And respect your elders." Susan teased, and Caspian gave her a crooked smile, tossing another pair of breeches half-hazard into his trunk. Susan sighed dramatically, and moved to fold her husbands pants.

"Am I really that hopeless, love?" Caspian asked, handing her a shirt. Susan shook her head at him, folding it neatly before sticking it in his trunk.

"No, darling, you're just forgetful. What did Drinian say at the shipyard?" she asked, changing the subject. She was just going to help him, otherwise this task could take the rest of the day.

"Everything has managed to find its way onboard, other than our personal effects. Our cabin is most splendorous, I hope you like it." he replied, glad for the change of direction the conversation was taking.

"I helped design it dear, I'm sure it's fine." she replied. Caspian grinned again.

"I know. But I helped put it together." he said proudly. Susan gave him a soft smile, taking his chin between her fingers, and placing a light kiss on his lips. Caspian sighed at the contact.

"And I am most grateful. I can't wait to see the finished product when we embark tomorrow morning." she replied. Caspian dropped whatever he was holding, and embraced her.

"I still cannot believe you agreed to go. Or approved of the voyage at all." he breathed. Susan pulled away to kiss him fiercely, as if to prove her loyalty to him.

"Of course I'd come, and I certainly agree. It was an important promise you made to Aslan, to find your fathers closest friends, and I'd never let you go alone. I'll always stand by you, Caspian. I love you."

"As I love you, my Gentle Queen." he replied softly, kissing her again. The packing lay forgotten as the High King and his High Queen found their way to their bed. They could always continue later…

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><p>"You're positive you have <em>everything<em>?" Peter asked for the tenth time. Susan sighed, and smiled at her older brother.

"Yes, Pete. Drinian double checked, Caspian double checked, Lucy triple checked, and I doubled checked. I'm sure Reepicheep and Tavros checked once as well. It's all there. We have enough supplies to get us all the way to the Lone Islands if we wanted to, but you know we're stopping in Galma and Terebintnia _and_ the Seven Isles. We will be just fine." she replied. Peter looked a little less worried, then pulled his sister into a tight embrace.

"I'm going to miss you Su, I really am." he said quietly, for only her to hear. Susan squeezed him back tightly.

"I'll miss you too Peter, I wish you were coming with us." she said. He chuckled.

"Not without my Ali. And she won't set foot on this thing. It took a lot of effort for her to come to the docks, but she needed to say goodbye to her family." he replied. Susan sighed, hugging her older brother one last time. Then she moved on to his wife, her sister in all aspects but blood. Aliyah gave her a massive hug as well.

"I'll miss you, Su. Don't have too much fun without us." she said. Susan laughed.

"We'll try. Can't make any promises though. Caspian has a clinical obsession with the ocean, who knows what that man will get us into." she replied. She heard a familiar chuckle from behind her.

"Says you. Last time I checked, you were just as infatuated with the ocean as I am." Caspian retorted, giving Aliyah a big hug. They had grown as close as any brother and sister since she started living in Narnia full-time three and a half years ago.

"Yes, yes, you two are a match made in Aslan's Country, blah, blah, blah." came another familiar voice, as Edmund moved to hug his sister-in-law, after sharing his goodbyes with his older brother.

"Be good, Ed. Don't flirt with too many girls, wouldn't want to make Amanda jealous." Aliyah teased, and Edmund flushed, moving aside to make room for the whirlwind ball of energy that was Lucy. She had already shed tears all over Peter's good tunic, and now she was drenching Aliyah's dress.

"I'm going to miss you SO MUCH, sister!" she cried, wiping away the tears as she gave Aliyah a second bone-crushing hug. The Consort Queen chuckled, hugging her little sister back with enthusiasm.

"As we will miss you. Now, go on. Lord Drinian looks anxious to get going." she said softly. The monarchs all got one or two more goodbyes hugs in, then the sailing party needed to board the vessel. Susan leaned against the railing, one arm around her husband, the other waving goodbye to her older brother and his wife. Caspian had one of his arms around her in turn, and was waving goodbye with the other. A very large number of citizens had turned out at the docks to bid their Kings and Queens goodbye and good luck on their voyage, so it wasn't just Peter and Ali they waved goodbye to. Edmund was on Susan's right, waving with one hand, while on Caspian's left, Lucy was waving frantically with both of her hands, smiling hugely at her big brother. Peter and Aliyah were waving animatedly back, Peter with one arm around his wife's waist. The _Dawn Treader_ moved slowly away from the docks, and the crowd gathered grew smaller and smaller, until the had disappeared completely over the horizon. Susan let out a long sigh, and Caspian embraced her.

"I'm going to miss him. We haven't been separated for so long since he was off fighting the Giants of the North during the Golden Age." she mumbled into his chest. Caspian kissed the top of her head tenderly, giving her a gentle squeeze.

"You'll see him again soon. Until then, let us enjoy the adventure we are about to embark upon." he replied, trying to cheer her up. It was working.

"Sounds like an excellent idea to me, darling." she replied, kissing him as the sun rose to it's peak in the Narnian sky. What an adventure this was going to be.

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><p><strong>AN: Well, what did we think? A good opener? Or was it garbage? Send me a review, let me know! I love hearing from you guys, it encourages me to get moving on the next chapter!**

**Additional Note: As you have all hopefully figured out by now, quite a bit of time has passed since the previous story, _New Narnia_. With this in mind, the characters have obviously aged up a bit. So, here is my nicely updated list of the Kings and Queens ages (Aliyah and Eustace are included on this one) (they're listed oldest to youngest)  
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**Caspian: 22**

**Peter: 21**

**Susan: 20  
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**Aliyah: 20**

**Edmund: 17**

**Lucy: 15**

**Eustace: 12**

***EDIT* I aged Eustace down a few years, since according to the book (and some fabulously negative reviews) he's supposed to be a lot younger. So, there. Happy now?  
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	3. An Unexpected Guest

**A/N: Dang, I'm on a roll! Two updates two days in a row! Go me, hahaha. Anyway, here we have the reintroduction of Eustace and the Pevensie's (I now count Caspian as a Pevensie, which saves me the time of having to write his name after all theirs. Just so you all know.), and everyone's reactions and thoughts. I hope I got it right. I'm not very familiar with the _Dawn Treader_ story line, so I'm kind of researching bits as I go. Hopefully I did the Eustace thing justice...**

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><p>Caspian inhaled deeply, relishing in the smell of the sea. He stood at the bow, staring into the horizon as the <em>Dawn Treader<em> plowed ahead. They had left the Seven Isles a few days previously, and were in for quite some time of open ocean until the reached the Lone Islands. After that… well, Reepicheep insisted that's when the real adventure began.

As the High King of Narnia stood there, contemplating all this, he heard footsteps behind him, and felt someone brush up against his arm. Looking down, he grinned at the person who had joined him. Susan was looking back up at him, smiling, her hands clutching the rail. She turned her head to watch the ocean as well, and sighed.

"It's so beautiful. I never want it to end." she said quietly. Caspian nodded in agreement, snaking an arm around her waist.

"I agree. If only we could stay out here forever. So peaceful, so quiet, so beautiful…"

"OH MY GOODNESS, WHAT IS THAT!" Lucy shrieked from the main deck. Caspian and Susan's golden moment interrupted, they both turned quickly to see what she was shouting about. There, in the water, just in front of Lucy, was a person. A person who most certainly hadn't been there a moment ago, and who certainly had not fallen off the ship. Caspian went speeding down the stairs, grabbing onto the rigging, hauling himself up on the port side. Susan followed, standing next to him on the deck.

"It's definitely a person. Quickly, someone toss him a… CASPIAN! What are you doing, don't you dare…!" Susan shouted, and her husband stripped off his sword belt and her horn, passed it to Drinian, and dove head-first into the cold ocean.

"Loose the sails, we'll lose his Majesty if we keep moving!" Drinian shouted at the crew, and immediately, everyone was moving. Everyone except Susan, who was completely frozen in shock. Her husband had just jumped overboard. Into the ocean. She was going to _kill_ him when he got back.

Edmund gave his older sister a hard shove, moving her out of the way so they could lower a hastily thrown-together lift into the water. Susan watched the water anxiously, spotting Caspian in a matter of seconds. He was doing his best to tow the mysterious drowning person, but the boy was struggling against him. Eventually, Caspian got him on the lift, and the two of them stepped onto the deck. Well, Caspian stepped neatly onto the deck. The mysterious stranger fell in a heap, shouting and crying and making a ridiculous fuss. Susan charged at her husband, slamming into him. It was only Caspian's excellent training as a warrior that kept them both from falling over.

"Don't you DARE every do that again! I… you… UGH! You _idiot_!" she shouted, grabbing him by the collar and slamming her lips to his. Caspian seized up in shock, thinking for a minute she was going to hit him. Then he kissed her back.

"Sorry, my love." he whispered over and over, while Susan's vicious glare slowly softened, turning back into her usual expression. She was about to say something more, when they were interrupted. Again.

"No _way_." Edmund said loudly. Susan looked over at him, to see utter shock registered in his expression. Lucy said nothing, just standing with her mouth hanging open. They were both staring at the boy who Caspian had (stupidly) saved from the ocean. Susan's brow furrowed.

"What? What is it?" she asked, walking over. Then she got a good look at their castaway, had her jaw dropped. Caspian just continued to looked confused.

"Why are we all shocked?" he asked, then their castaway finally spoke up, seemingly having heard Caspian's accent.

"PIRATES! SPANIARD PIRATES! Oh, god, I'm going to die, I'm going to die! The Spaniard pirate battalion has taken me, using their black-magic-witchcraft-science to pull me into the ocean from the own hoooome!" he shouted, and Lucy winced. Caspian just looked even more confused.

"What is a Spani-ard?" he asked, turning to his wife. The castaway just started to sob like a little girl. Susan sighed, looking over at Edmund. Her brother looked just about ready to draw his sword, and run the boy through with it.

"That's not important right now, Cas. What's important is that we throw this one back." Edmund replied. The castaway perked up, his head flicking in the direction of the Just Kings voice.

"_You_! You're supposed to be missing! Vanished without a trace from the bloody underground on the way to boarding school! How did you become part of the Spaniard pirate brigade?" he shouted, and Edmund sighed heavily, fixating a glare on the boy. Lucy stepped tentatively forward.

"Eustace?" she said quietly. His head whipped around to look at her, and his eyes nearly bugged out of his head.

"What on earth happened to you! You were 11 the last time I saw you! Is this more witchcraft?" he babbled. Susan sighed very loudly, attracting Eustace's attention once again. He was unable to make words this time, just opening and closing his mouth stupidly at the sight of Susan there, in her 20's, when the last time he saw her, she'd just turned sixteen.

"You know him?" Caspian asked, thunderstruck. Susan nodded sadly.

"Meet your extended family; this is Eustace, our cousin." she said. Caspian blinked a few times, turning to look from his wife to the young boy laying on the deck before him, back to his wife, to her siblings.

"You're serious?" he finally asked, and Edmund burst out laughing. Lucy couldn't contain a giggle, and Susan grinned at her husband.

"Completely." she replied. Eustace, meanwhile, had been scrutinizing this exchange closely.

"Extended family? Since when are we related to Spanish pirates!" he demanded, and Edmund laughed even harder at him. Susan shook her head, and wrapped and arm around her still soaking-wet husband.

"Susan married him, Eustace. Not that you'd know that." Lucy replied, and Eustace's eyes grew so large, they almost popped out of his head.

"She can't be _married_, she's only sixteen!" he shouted, standing up at last, so he could point at the couple accusingly.

"Time moves differently here, Eustace." Lucy said calmly. He glared at her.

"Oh, and where is here? Your stupid made-up land of Narnia?" he asked sarcastically.

"Yes." Edmund replied sharply, "And Susan just turned 20. She's plenty old enough to be married." he added. Eustace began to hyperventilate, and put both hands to his head, shaking it back and forth.

"Doesn't make any sense, doesn't make any sense!" he repeated over an over. When he finally raised his head up again, he looked completely petrified with fear, "I DEMAND TO KNOW WHERE IN THE BLAZES AM I!" he finally shouted at the top of his lungs, turning and walking… into Tavros.

"You're on board the _Dawn Treader_, finest ship in Narnia's navy!" the minotaur replied, having missed the initial encounter with the frightened boy since he was below deck. Eustace took one look at Tavros, and fainted. Edmund started laughing again, while Lucy and Susan made their way over to his limp little body. Susan sighed heavily.

"Come one, let's get him bellow deck. He's upset, no use having him complain how uncomfortable he is on the floor on top of everything else. And Caspian, you need to change out of your wet things. You'll catch your death if you don't" she said, looking over at Caspian. He responded immediately, picking up the boy and following his wife bellow deck. Well, fancy that, he had a cousin-in-law…

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><p>"Eustace. Useless Eustace, the hopeless case. How on EARTH did he get into Narnia!" Edmund ranted a short time later. The royals had all gathered in Susan and Caspian's cabin, and were discussing this very, very unexpected turn of events.<p>

"I haven't the foggiest. But Aslan knows what he's doing. He brought Eustace here for a reason." Lucy replied evenly. Everyone was silent for a few minutes. They knew better now than to doubt Aslan, even for a second.

"Still… Eustace? He couldn't have sent one of Peter's school friends or something?" Edmund whined. Susan sighed. Of all the Pevensie siblings, Eustace seemed to dislike Edmund the most, going out of his way to tick the Just King off.

"Well, he's here now, and we'll just have to deal with him. Maybe he was sent to help." Susan said, and Edmund snorted.

"Help by doing what? Whining at the top of his lungs about the cold, the wet, the 'Spaniards', and the lack of a British Counsel?" he said, and Susan and Lucy had to snicker. Someone knocked on the door a moment later.

"Enter." Caspian called. Drinian poked his head in, followed closely by the First Mater, Rynelf. They both had a mad look in their eyes.

"The castaway has woken up and he, ah, is being rather… difficult." the captain finally said. Edmund growled, and Susan rolled her eyes at him.

"Come one, Lu. Let's go see what the problem is." the Gentle Queen said, and Lucy rose to follow her. Caspian moved to come along.

"You sure you want to go Cas? I had no idea you were a masochist." Edmund commented, planting himself firmly in a chair in the corner of the cabin. No way he was going to hang around Eustace voluntarily. Caspian chose not to reply, and simply followed his wife and sister down to the crew quarters, where Eustace had a corner all to himself, and was being given wide berth by everyone else down there at the moment. He was moaning and groaning, making it sound like he was dying. Lucy clutched at her cordial instinctively, and the three monarchs approached him warily. Eustace spotted them, and groaned even louder.

"Please tell me the storm has nearly passed." he moaned. Caspian looked incredulous.

"Storm? Fairer weather a man couldn't ask for!" he replied, and Eustace flinched at the sound of his voice.

"Damn Spaniard…" he grumbled. Susan fought the urge to slap him.

"Caspian is NOT a Spaniard. He's Narnian." she snapped at him. Caspian looked at her.

"Telmarine, darling." he corrected. Susan shook her head.

"Narnian now, my love. Narnian since you switched sides all that time ago. Probably before." she replied. Before Caspian could reply, Eustace moaned again.

"Can they take that elsewhere? It's making me sicker than the boat." he whined.

"Ship." Caspian corrected automatically, as Lucy hurried up to Eustace's side.

"Here, Eustace, this will make you feel much better." she said, uncorking her cordial.

"You really want to waste it on Eustace?" came another voice, and they all turned to see Edmund had joined them, "I got bored alone in Su and Cas's love nest." he explained. Susan pointedly ignored the jibe.

"It smells awful." Eustace complained. Now they all knew he was faking it. Not much in the world smelled better that the healing potion Lucy had received from Father Christmas when the Pevensie's had first come to Narnia.

"Most medicines do." Lucy soothed. Eustace put up a little bit of a fuss, but eventually let Lucy give him a drop. He gagged loudly, and said it tasted worse than it smelled, but color returned to his face, and his eyes looked a tad brighter and more alive.

"Would you like to come up on deck? Fresh air might do you some good." Susan said, trying to be nice to the little brat. He huffed, crossing his arms and burrowing further into his hammock.

"Not in the slightest. It smells rotten up there, like fish and un-showered _Spaniards_." he complained. Susan had no response to that, simply turning and leaving. Caspian followed without hesitation. She was probably upset from Eustace's Spani-ard comment. Edmund didn't need telling twice to leave. Lucy, however, lingered for a moment.

"You know, there's no way for you to get back. Not now, at least. You might as well try to enjoy yourself a little. And be a little nicer to us, since we are the Kings and Queens of Narnia. The crew won't take kindly to you insulting its monarchs." she said simply, turning and leaving as well. This left Eustace very confused, seeing as he was now both unsure of what he was going to do, and wondering how on _earth_ his awful cousins (and that Spaniard pirate) had managed to become Kings and Queens of a magical land that didn't exist.

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><p><strong>AN: So, how was it? Send me a review, let me know! Was Eustace okay?  
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	4. Eustace's Explanations

**A/N: Wow, I am really sorry. For a number of things, actually. First and foremost, sorry for how bloody long this update took! This chapter was just very hard, it's a descriptive chapter, leading up to their adventures on the Lone Islands (hint hint), and was just slightly boring to write. That, and I'm extremely lazy and kept procrastinating. So, it's all my fault, but at least it's finally here. And is also the longest chapter in this story file so far. So, I hope that makes up for the wait. Also, all those people who have been reviewing all three of my stories in the last few weeks, I'm extremely sorry I haven't replied! I went to reply this morning, and something had gone horribly wrong with fanfiction and the review reply option. All my reviews, old and new, were said to have outdated links, therefore I could not reply to a single one. And I had about twenty people I owed replies. I am SO, VERY SORRY! I love replying to you guys, and I love hearing your feedback on my story. Please don't be discouraged becasue I'm lazy and something went wonky; please keep on reviewing, I WILL reply this time around!**

**Oh, also, to start of the chapter today, we get a little peak into what Peter and Aliyah are up to back at Cair. Since one of the reviews I am unable to reply to asked me if I was going to do that. Which I am. Are. Already did. Whatever, just enjoy!  
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><p>Aliyah blinked several times slowly in the early morning light. She hadn't fallen asleep until very late the night before, and now she was up with the sunrise. She hadn't been sleeping full nights for almost two weeks. Ever since the rest of her family had gone off on their voyage. Sighing, she turned to look at her husband. Peter was obviously awake, laying on his back with a hand behind his head, staring blankly at the ceiling. She touched a hand to his arm, and Peter slowly turned to look at her, giving her a small smile.<p>

"I couldn't sleep." he said simply. Aliyah sighed.

"Neither could I. I miss them."

"Me too. We haven't been apart this long since the Golden Age, and we were all older then, so it wasn't as bad as this." he replied.

"They'll be back soon. We just can't dwell on the sad parts." she said. Peter gave a breathy laugh.

"You sound like Su and Lu rolled into one person. Do you think it's a bad thing I married both my sisters?" he asked. Aliyah hit him with a pillow.

"Normally, that should be a compliment." she said, sitting up. Peter picked a few feathers out of his mouth, then sat up next to her.

"You know I'm joking, sweetheart." he mumbled. Aliyah sighed softly, and took his hand.

"I know. I keep seeing them all in everything. Lucy out in the orchards, Susan helping Mario in the kitchens, Caspian out on his horse, Ed reading in the library. It will be hard a little while longer. Then, hopefully, everything will lighten up and we'll find some normalcy again." she said. Peter smiled at her.

"I love you." he said simply in response. Ali gave him a kiss for his efforts.

"I love you too, Peter. Now, come on, we're up now, might as well get breakfast and get ready."

"Ready for what?"

"Dragos is coming for a visit, remember? He and Roxana are brining their oldest son to visit Narnia for the first time. His letter said he thought the future King of Archenland should have a better understanding of the neighboring countries. You two are friends, you should probably be there to greet him when he arrives, dear." she replied, moving to get out of bed. Peter grabbed at her arm.

"But it's so early. We could sleep a little longer… or not sleep at all." he said, giving her a sly grin. Aliyah raised an eyebrow at him.

"Recovered quite well from that little bout of depression, didn't we?" she teased, sliding back into bed. Peter pinned her to the mattress.

"How could I ever be depressed when I have you?" he asked her quietly. Rather than respond with words, Aliyah kissed him. Kissed him with a fiery hot intensity she knew drove Peter crazy. The sheets on their bed had been rather neat an undisturbed when the couple had first woken up, due to both of them not sleeping much. Such was not the case when Narnia's acting High Monarchs left their chambers for breakfast a few hours later, both with a distinct glint in their eyes.

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><p>"Land ho!" Rynelf shouted from the crows nest. Susan's head snapped up, squinting into the sun as she spotted the dark little speck on the horizon. The Lone Islands were in sight.<p>

"We should arrive in the early hours of tomorrow. Just as the sun comes up." Drinian informed her. Susan had been standing with the captain, her husband, and her younger brother on the quarterdeck, assisting with navigation. She and Ed had sailed these waters before, after all. Lucy was up on the bow with Reepicheep, who was fond of standing in the mouth of the dragon carving that adorned the front of the ship, and Eustace… was hiding behind some barrels and ropes, muttering to himself as he wrote furiously in a little journal.

"Is it wrong that I want to cut his tongue out?" Edmund asked from behind her. Susan turned, scowling at her brother.

"Yes. He's new here, his parents raised him to believe in facts and logic and sciences. He never heard fairytales as a little boy. I'd expect him to be worse than his usual self because of that. This goes against anything and everything he's ever known." she replied, and Edmund rolled his eyes.

"He's still a right little beast though, and even you have to admit it. You look ready to shoot him every time he calls Caspian an 'unwashed Spaniard'." Edmund retorted. Susan had no response to that, since it was true. It was one thing Eustace making fun of them, his blood relatives. It was another thing altogether when he targeted her Caspian.

"Yes, well, maybe if we if ignore him, he'll fall overboard and no one will notice." Susan replied. Edmund chuckled.

"There's my _gentle_ big sister." he teased, and Susan stuck her tongue out at him. Drinian shook his head at them, turning back to the charts. Caspian materialized beside his wife.

"You look about seven when you do that, my love." he said. She scowled at him, but he kissed her, effectively brightening her mood. Edmund, on the other hand, made a fantastic retching noise. Eustace could even be heard gagging on the lower deck.

"Get a room!" the young boy shouted, returning to scribbling in his notebook. Edmund actually smiled at him.

"Look at that, something Eustace is good for." he said, seemingly very proud of his ghastly little cousin as he made his way down the stairs, in the direction of the foredeck. Susan sighed dramatically.

"Why did we bring Edmund again?" she asked, as she and Caspian made their way to their private cabin. With a door that locked. Her husband chuckled.

"Because he is a master with the blade, and usually acts much more maturely. But, then again, so do you darling." he added. Susan shook her head at him, stepping out onto their little balcony. It overlooked the stern of the ship, sitting just above the water. She sighed, enjoying the sight of the mid-morning sun glinting off the ocean. She didn't notice when Caspian joined her, as he had snuck up soundlessly. He wasn't billed the greatest stalker in Narnia for nothing. The two of them just stood there for a while, Caspian's hand over Susan's on the railing, watching as the morning slid into noon. When the sun was at its peak, that's when the ruckus started.

"GET IT AWAY, GET IT AWY, I SAY! THE LITTLE BRUTE HALF-KILLED ME!" came the wailing voice of Eustace from the deck above them. Caspian sighed, turning to leave the cabin.

"You are sure the relation is by blood?" he asked, as he and Susan made their way back up to the main deck. The Gentle Queen snickered, and nodded.

"Sadly. He really is just awful, so rude and inconsiderate. Never minds what he says. He seems much worse than I remember, though." she replied, as they came face-to-face with the source of the noise. Eustace was cornered up by the rigging, with Reepicheep's rapier pointed at his neck. Lucy was standing a few feet away, hands over her mouth, and Ed was next to her, looking torn between laughing, and drawing his own sword on Eustace as well. The crew was standing around, expressions on their faces in varying degrees of shock and amusement.

"What happened?" Caspian asked, trying to sound demanding, but failing. He just sounded tired. They were all rather tired of Eustace, and he'd been on the ship a grand total of one day. Eustace, Edmund, Lucy and Reepicheep all started talking at once, and Caspian pinched the bridge of his nose between his forefinger and thumb, taking a deep breath. He did not need this right now. Susan placed a hand on his arm, and used her other hand to cut the chattering group off. There was silence for a moment or two, then the Gentle Queen spoke up.

"Slowly, and one at a time. Lucy? What happened?" she asked, in a slow, calming voice one might use when speaking to a difficult child. Lucy took a deep breath, then said many things all at once. Susan really had to focus to catch most of what she was jabbering on about.

"I heard shouting and came up on deck and Eustace had Reep by the tail and was swinging him around and I don't know why and then Reep got free and pulled his sword on Eustace and then Ed came rushing over as well and looked ready to pull his sword too and then Eustace started screaming and then you two showed up." she reported. Caspian squeezed his nose tighter. Susan sighed heavily.

"Eustace, _why_ were you swinging Reepicheep around by the tail? That was incredibly rude, and could have hurt him." Susan said, turning her attention to her little cousin. He scowled at her, searching for words. Probably long, complicated words he thought would confuse her. She really disliked him sometimes…

"That dirty great animal bloody attacked me while I was in the dark, dank storage area where the food is kept! I was _trying_ to find some Plumptree's Vitaminized Nerve Food, which these disgusting Spaniard pirates _clearly_ are too uncivilized to possess, and the brute told me to stop stealing food rations!" he bellowed at her. Susan shut her eyes tightly. _You're the Gentle Queen, you're the Gentle Queen, you're the Gentle Queen…_ she chanted to herself. She opened them again, glancing at her husband. He had stopped pinching his nose, and was staring at the boy ten yeas his junior with nothing but confusion. Susan could _guess_ what that was about… Nerve Food indeed.

"Eustace, you must wait to eat with the rest of the crew, if you're found going through the storage areas, people are going to assume you have less-than pure intentions about the rations. We only have so much, you see, and it needs to last us many days at sea." she finally managed to say, much calmer than she thought she'd manage. If he called Caspian a dirty Spaniard pirate _one more time_…

"But I'm hungry _NOW_!" he complained at the top of his lungs, and the Pevensie's all flinched. His tone was deafening.

"Is this how you behave for your mother, Eustace?" Lucy asked, trying to take a more proactive role in the dispute. The boy turned his glare on to her.

"No, it's not, because Alberta is never home! She's always with _your_ mother, trying to make her feel better since her children have been missing for over a year!" he shouted at her. All present Pevensie siblings froze, shocked. The thought of their parents had crossed their minds once or twice, but they had always assumed that they had simply vanished from existence in their original world. They never imagined their parents would still be able to remember them. To say it was distressing news was an understatement.

"What… did you just say?" Susan said, her voice shaking and nearly a whisper. Caspian reacted immediately, wrapping an arm around her waist. She was distressed, she needed him. Lucy had gone very, very pale, and Edmund had a vicious scowl on his face. Eustace looked mildly suspired.

"You didn't know?" he said stupidly. Edmund almost growled at him.

"Do you honestly think if we did know our mother was suffering, we'd just sit back and let her?" he snapped. Eustace seemed to shrink a little under his cousins glare. Lucy started to cry. That was when Susan reacted automatically, slipping from her husbands embrace to embrace her younger sister instead. Caspian sighed softly. He hated seeing them so upset, especially Susan and Lucy. They needed to take care of this… privately. They were still all standing on the main deck, surrounding by the curious crew.

"Love, come, let us take this discussion elsewhere. Edmund, Eustace?" Caspian said softly, wrapping on of his arms around his wife and younger sister, while his brother and newly discovered cousin-in-law followed them below deck.

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><p>They all ended up in Susan and Caspian's cabin (as it was the largest, accommodating two people rather than just one), with Eustace standing awkwardly in the corner, Lucy still being held by Susan on the bed, and Caspian and Edmund in chairs near the girls. Eustace shuffled loudly, drawing everyone's attention back to the buggering snot.<p>

"We're missing back in England?" Susan finally said. Eustace nodded.

"For over a year. A year and a month to the day, actually, when I was nearly drowned and pulled into a painting (of all things)." he muttered the last bit, but everyone still heard him. They chose to ignore it.

"We just… vanished, from the train station?" Edmund asked, addressing Eustace properly for the first time since he had arrived. Eustace nodded.

"There was one 'witness', if you could even call him that. He was a bloody idiot, that's what he was. Wouldn't shut up about some girl named Phyllis. Who's Phyllis, do any of you know?" he asked. There was total silence for a few seconds, then Susan and Lucy burst out laughing. Caspian and Eustace looked confused, but Edmund cracked a smile. They'd told him and Peter about the 'Phyllis' incident.

"What… what did he tell mother?" Susan stammered finally, between giggles. Eustace gave her a funny look, then continued.

"That one minute the four of you were there, and the next minute you had all vanished into thin air, leaving your luggage behind. And he was wondering why 'Phyllis's' luggage read 'Susan' on it. Am I missing something?" he asked again, when Susan and Lucy burst out into renewed giggles. Even Edmund was laughing at this point. It was nice, they had all been so very upset a moment ago. At least there was _something_ to smile about in this awful predicament… their poor mother.

"Wait, what about our father?" Edmund said suddenly. The girls sobered up quickly at that. He had still been fighting in the war when they went off to boarding school, and there was no word on when he was to return.

"He's off in America for his new job. Aunt Helen was supposed to go with him, but she didn't want to leave in case her 'precious children' turned up." Eustace replied, making dramatic air quotes around the phrase 'precious children'. The Pevensie's visibly sighed in relief. At least he was okay, he made it though the war, he came back home. Sort of.

"Poor mummy…" Lucy whimpered. Susan squeezed her a little tighter.

"We'll figure this out Lu. We always do. If we reach Aslan's Country at the End of the World, maybe Aslan himself will be able to do something. We could ask him when we get there." Susan soothed, and Lucy smiled, snuggling closer into her big sisters embrace.

"That's right. Aslan will help us sort it out, Lu." Edmund added, surprising everyone in the room (even Eustace) by getting up from his chair, and hugging his little sister as well. Caspian was feeling left out of the family moment, so rose from his chair as well, hugging his wife. Eustace cleared his throat loudly, effectively ruining the touching family moment.

"Is there anything else I can help you with?" Susan snapped at him. Eustace scowled at her, glancing at Caspian quickly, before returning his gaze to Susan.

"Not unless you can get me a proper bed and some decent food." he complained. So much for the almost-maybe-a-tad-civil Eustace they'd seem a moment ago.

"You can room with Edmund if the crew's hold bothers you that much. We can string your hammock up in the corner." Lucy said. Edmund let out a sound of disgust.

"No, absolutely not. He's not rooming with me. This cabin is bigger, he can stay here." Edmund retorted. Susan shook her head violently.

"He can't stay in here. This is _our_ cabin. Mine and Caspian's. No, absolutely not. Just no. And he can't stay with Lu. That's a little strange. It's going to have to be you, Ed." Susan said, glancing at her husband quickly. He seemed to be breathing a sigh of relief. There were several very good reasons Eustace should NOT room with the High Monarchs of Narnia. She was sure Caspian could list at least a dozen. As could she. Caspian nodded in support of his wife.

"_WHY_?" Edmund groaned, making it sound more like a whine Eustace would normally give off. Susan raised an eyebrow at him, and then Edmund understood, and made an appropriately grossed-out retching sound, "That's bloody disgusting. I did NOT need to know that was one of your reasons for not wanting to share with Eustace. Yuck. Come on, you buggering snot, lets go find your hammock." Edmund finally growled, taking Eustace by the arm and dragging him out of the cabin. Lucy snickered after them, gave her sister and brother-in-law on last set of hugs, then exited the cabin herself, saying something about sketching Drinian steering the ship. Once the door shut behind her, Susan let out a massive sigh of relief.

"For a moment there, I thought we were in trouble." she said, wrapping her arms around Caspian's waist. He chuckled into her hair.

"As did I. if Eustace stayed in here with us, I couldn't do this…" he added, tilting her chin up and kissing her. Susan smiled into the kiss, pulling him closer to her, extracting a little growl from her husband. She shivered when Caspian's hands found the hem of the shirt she was wearing, yanking it off of her in one quick move. She got a good look at his eyes in that moment: dark, almost black, full of lust and desire. It made her quake in anticipation. She was certain her own eyes reflected the same feelings as she got his shirt over his head, running her hands along the perfect muscles of his chest. Caspian moaned at her touch, moving along even faster. Their clothes lay in a path along the cabin floor, leading to the bed, where the royal couple made sweet, passionate love until the sun vanished beyond the horizon and the day came to a close. There was an adventure in store for them tomorrow…

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><p><strong>AN: So, what did we think? Please, please, PLEASE review, i WILL reply this time, I promise! I always try to reply, to let you guys all know that I really DO care about you reading the story, and what you have to say about it. So, thank you to all those who reviewed my new one-shots (and two-shot, especially) in the _Novella_, and the reviews I got on the previous chapter of this story, and even the few reviews I got on my very first story, _New Narnia_. They mean the whole world to me, guys, so don't ever stop! I love hearing from you all!  
><strong>


	5. Capture In Narrowhaven

**IMPORTANT, READ, READ, READ! IMPORTANT A/N!**

**Hi, yeah. So, this A/N is actually really important, so I hope you all read it... It's about how exactly I'm going to do the whole Voyage, whether I'll follow the book or the movie. To answer all those questions, I'm just going to say it here. I'll be following the plot of the movie, but with one glaring exception. No Green Mist. The Mist from the movie was supposedly supposed to be a manifestation of The Lady of the Green Kirtle, the evil witch from _The Silver Chair_. Since I have utterly nixed that story line from my fic, I feel there is absolutely no need to have the Mist present. Plus, I thought it was stupid. But that's just me. So, no Mist. And I moved Lord Bern. He's NOT going to be in the dungeon with Caspian and Edmund. You shall understand that a little later... So, yes. I hope I did okay... I mostly took lines straight from the film, I was literally watching pieces of it, then writing, and re-winding to get the lines just right. I hope you all enjoy :)**

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><p>As Susan blinked wearily a few times the following morning, she became moderately aware of two things almost immediately. The first, what that she was still exceptionally tired, despite the fact that Caspian had let her sleep <em>most <em>of the night. She hoped she would be functional on their excursion to the Lone Islands that day. The second thing was a little harder to place, as it wasn't as obvious as her exhaustion from their rather intense round of lovemaking the night before. Something was… different. Blinking a few more times, Susan finally realized what it was. They weren't moving. The ship, that is. It had stopped. She glanced at the window. The sun had yet to even rise.

Sighing, the Gentle Queen of Narnia rolled over in bed, coming face-to-face with her sleeping husband. She smiled at him, as it was always a treat to watch him sleep. He was so relaxed, so peaceful looking. He could be relaxed and happy when he was awake, but there was an innocence that came over him when he was sleeping. It was adorable.

She reached out a hand, brushing her fingers along the side of his face. It was pleasantly coarse under her fingers, she thought with another smile. Caspian had given up on the institution of shaving about two days into the voyage. He had tried it one morning, then the ship had been hit by a particularly large wave, and he had ended up cutting the side of his face. Several loud curse words (both in English and the Telmarine dialect) and a bloody cloth later, he had all but tossed his razor overboard. He himself wasn't a fan of the hair he was allowing to grow on his face. He complained for the first little while that it was very itchy, and then once it had grown in a little, complained that he was starting to look like his uncle and his father. However, Susan complimented it often, as she actually was quiet fond of it, so he had quit the whining after a week or so.

Caspian sighed and shifted in his sleep, causing Susan to grin even more. He was so handsome, it really shouldn't be allowed. She loved him so much, with everything she had. And she knew he loved her just as much. They would do anything for one another, Susan thought, leaning in and kissing him softly on the lips. He shifted again, and murmured. She held back a giggle at the sight, her big, strong, Telmarine King behaving like a little child. It was very, very sweet. She leaned in and kissing him again, and this time he sighed, and opened his eyes.

"Good morning, love." she whispered. He grinned, leaning forward to kiss her himself.

"Good morning. Whatever did I do to merit such a pleasant wake-up?" he asked, his delightful accent thicker than usual due to his tiredness. Susan simply smiled, loving the sound of his voice at that moment.

"Because I love you." she replied simply.

"As I love you." he replied, kissing her again, rolling them so he was pressed on top of her. Susan loved the feeling, his weight pushing against her. She never felt trapped, or unable to breath. She felt loved. Loved by the most perfect, caring, thoughtful man in all the worlds.

Several minutes later, loud and obvious knocking could be heard on their cabin door. Caspian growled softly at the intrusion, and Susan sighed, glancing around her husband towards the door.

"Yes?" she called. There was an awkward throat-clearing.

"Drinian asked that someone went to wake the High King up. I lost in rock-paper-scissors against Lu, Rynelf and Indigo. Again. So, get up. I'm not going to even think about opening this door, considering no one has seen either one of you since after supper yesterday, and I can only imagine what you've been up to. I would like to keep my innocence intact a little longer, thank you very much." came Edmund's voice. Susan chuckled.

"Like you have an ounce of innocence left, Ed. Thanks for the wake-up call. We'll be right out." Susan replied, and Caspian made a whining sound in her ear. She kissed him for his troubles, and moved to get out of bed.

"Really, my love? You are going to listen to Edmund?" Caspian asked, reclining back on the bed as he watched Susan move about the cabin, utterly naked. It was a fine sight, for him at least. She turned to make a face at him.

"Actually, they were Drinian's orders. Edmund just always ends up being the bearer of news." she replied, extracting a pair of breeches and her knickers from one of the drawers. She pulled them on, and a shirt soon followed. Then she stole a pair of Caspian's boots, since the tailors had made a mistake with all of hers. Every single pair had heels. Fine for walking around on the ship. Not so fine for trekking through possibly hostile environments. Caspian sighed once she was completely dressed, groaning as he hauled himself out of bed and got dressed. Susan forced him to run a comb through his hair at least once before they made their way up to the main deck. The sun was barely peaking above the horizon, so the crew was using lamps to be able to see properly.

"Majesties." Drinian greeted them as Susan and Caspian moved to stand with the captain, Lucy and Edmund around an old map of the Lone Islands.

"Captain. What have we established so far considering the Lone Islands?" Caspian asked briskly, all business.

"Not much more than what we knew coming in. There hasn't been contact between the Islands and Narnia in hundreds of years, and from what we can see through the spyglass, there isn't a Narnian flag to be seen. Which could pose a potential problem, if the King suddenly decides to show up after all this time. The Islanders might not respond positively." Drinian replied. Susan nodded thoughtfully, glancing at her siblings. They all had similar slightly grim expressions on their faces. No one likes a possible dangerous or hostile situation. Susan tightened the strap of her quiver on her shoulder.

"Well? What's the plan?" the High Queen asked, turning to her husband. He was having a wordless conversation with Edmund, the two of them seemingly coming to a conclusion when Caspian turned to his wife a moment later.

"We'll launch the longboats, and send a party into the city. You, me, Ed, Lu, and, um, I suppose Eustace will go in. Everyone else will wait by the docks. If we're not back by midday, send a search party." Caspian said, addressing the last sentence to Drinian. The captain nodded, and turned to Tavros, who had been standing nearby.

"Call the orders." he said to the minotaur. Tavros nodded, and started shouting directions at the crew assembled below. Edmund scowled up at his brother.

"Eustace? Really? You're making us take him along?" he complained as the royals moved to the weapons storage room. Edmund and Caspian grabbed swords, and Caspian took a crossbow as well. Lucy selected herself a few long and short daggers, and Susan added a short dagger to her belt. Caspian nodded in response to Edmund.

"I am not about to leave him with the crew. They would probably throw the boy back into the water where he came from." Caspian replied, helping Susan and Lucy into one of the boats. Lucy snickered at Eustace's face. He'd been standing behind Caspian and Edmund almost the whole time.

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><p>There was reverent silence as the two long-boats glided across the still water towards the port of Narrowhaven, located on the largest Lone Island, Doorn. Caspian and Edmund were rowing the boat consisting of the royal family, Eustace and Reepicheep, while Lucy steered and Susan worried. She had a bad feeling about this, a very bad feeling… The eerie silence, lack of wind, and no notable flags signifying the alliance of the Islands did not bode well in Susan's mind. She kept it to herself though, not wanting to worry her family with her troubles.<p>

The royals stepped lightly from the boats, while Eustace tripped and fell numerous times, grumbling about the cleanliness of the docks and the dark from the pre-dawn light. Caspian sighed at the boy, turning to say something to Lucy when he heard a sound. Everyone present (except Eustace) drew some kind of weapon and pointed it in the general direction of the noise. A few moments later, everything seemed still to be quiet, and Caspian reluctantly lowered his crossbow. He noticed his wife lower her bow as well, while Lucy and Edmund sheathed their dagger and sword respectively. Reepicheep kept his blade at the ready, and Drinian looked anxious.

"You're certain about this, your Majesty?" he asked Caspian. The Telmarine King nodded.

"Like I said, if we're not back by midday, send a party." the King replied, locking eyes with his wife quickly. Then, the four royals (and a rather put-out Eustace) made their way into the city, weapons at the ready.

They skulked around the city, and things just got gradually weirder. There was no one around. Not a soul. Not even a stray cat. Eustace was peaking in windows, while the Kings and Queens made their way to a larger building with a heavy wooden door. It seemed like it could be the town center perhaps. Caspian stood at the front of the group, his crossbow poised to fire. Susan was right behind him, minding her husbands back. Lucy was behind her sister, and Edmund was at the back, given the horrendous task of minding Eustace. The boy in question straightened up suddenly, stumbling a few feet away from a boarded up window. He straightened his clothes and looked at his cousins.

"Yeah, it looks like nobody's in, so do you think we could head back? he asked. Edmund exchanged an exasperated look with Caspian, the begrudgingly addressed his beastly little cousin.

"Do you want to come here and guard… something?" Edmund finally said, rolling his eyes. Eustace jumped a little at being addressed civilly by Edmund, and came rushing over.

"Ah, yes! Good idea cousin. Very, uh, logical." he said, coming to an unsteady stop at the base of the stairs leading to the door. He looked up at the four royals expectantly. Caspian sighed with resignation, and approached the boy. He drew a short dagger from his belt, and held it out to him. The kid looked like he hadn't the slightest idea what to do with the weapon, but look it anyway. "I've got it, I've got it. Don't worry." he added. The monarchs turned to give Eustace a 'look', then exchanged exasperated glances themselves. Susan repressed a sigh at the whole pathetic exchange, then lead the way into the building.

"What a total waste of space." Edmund commented as they entered. Indeed, it was rather wasteful there was almost nothing in the chamber, save for a little table with numerous books spread out all over it, a few decapitated statues, and bells hanging in the ceiling. Susan repressed a shudder. Something felt off.

"Who are all these people?" Lucy asked, having investigated the open book on the table.

"And why are the crossed off?" Edmund added. Caspian glanced at it, and frowned disapprovingly.

"It looks like some kind of… fee." Susan said. Caspian sighed sadly.

"Slave traders. From Calormen. These amounts are all written in their currency." he replied. Susan stiffened suddenly. She could have sworn she heard…

"AAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!" someone suddenly screamed. Out of nowhere, men started sliding down the ropes used to ring the bells. All armed. Caspian reacted immediately, taking two out with his crossbow before moving for his sword. His wife was faster; Susan managed to drop five of the slave traders before she was forced put her bow away and draw her dagger instead. Edmund was taking on three men at once, and Lucy was fairing exceptionally well. Caspian couldn't help but feel a little proud as he went for the throat of the man before him…

"AHHhhhhh!" came another shout. This one was much higher pitched, almost girlish. Caspian's head immediate snapped to look at Lucy. She was completely fine, which meant the author of the scream had to be…

"Unless you wanna hear this one squeal like a girl again, I'd say you should drop your weapons." another man said, holding Caspian's dagger to Eustace's throat.

"Like a girl…!" Eustace started to protest.

"NOW!" the man shouted, tightening his hold on the frightened boy. With great regret, after a few moments, the Narnian royals allowed their weapons to clatter to the floor.

"Useless." Edmund muttered, glaring at his cousin.

"Put them in iron!" the slave trader commanded, tugging forcefully on Eustace's ear. The men left standing immediately moved to follow orders, roughly binding the hands of the royals.

"Get your hands off me!" Susan spat, causing Caspian's world to grow red at the edges. He fought valiantly against his captor, but another man moved to help put the High King in iron, preventing him from taking the head off of the slaver that dare man-handle his wife.

"Let's take these three to market," the man holding Eustace said, gesturing to the boy he held by the ear and the two queens, "Send those two to the dungeon." he added, gesturing to Caspian and Edmund. The royals immediately began struggling, not wanting to be separated. One of the slapped Edmund across the face when he became too unruly.

"You'll pay for that." the Just King spat.

"Actually, someone else is going to pay… for all of you." came the voice of yet another slave trader. Then, the girls and Eustace were dragged in one direction, while the Two Kings were pulled in another.

"Caspian! CASPIAN!" Susan screamed.

"EDMUND!" Lucy shouted.

"SUSAN!" Caspian hollered.

"Lucy!" Edmund called, but it was all in vain. The royal family was split up, the two Kings tossed in a dark, dank dungeon, while the Queens and Eustace were dragged to market.

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><p><strong>AN: DUN, DUN, DUHHHH! Oh, noes. They've been captured! Normally, this would be a total cliffhanger. But if you guys are half the Narnia geek I am (which I know you all are, so don't even try to deny it, hahaha), then you know EXACTLY what is going to happen next. I promise to try and get the next chapter written as quickly as possible. I'm really enjoying writing at the moment, so hopefully it'll be sooner than later! Thanks for reading, and don;t forget to review!  
><strong>


	6. The Retaking Of Narrowhaven

**A/N: Ta-Dum! Here we are, the conclusion to the Lone Islands saga-thingy! I know you all knew exactly what was coming, but I did change a few things up. Lord Bern makes his appearance in this chapter, and it's a little bit... weird. Even I will admit that. Now, I know in the book, he purchases Caspian from the slavers right away, and in the film, he meets Caspian and Edmund in the dungeon-thing. Well, I sort of... blended those two things together, and it just came out very unusual. But it worked with the story, so I'll try not to obsess over it too much. This chapter MOSTLY follows the movie plot, with a few things taken out (like the Mist, and the 7 swords), and a few of my own things added in. I hope you all enjoy it :)**

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><p>Edmund was very confused. By several things, as a matter of fact. Firstly off, his head hurt like<em> hell<em>. And he had absolutely no idea why for the time being. He was sure once he regained consciousness a little, it would all come back to him. The other thing that was plaguing him in his fuzzy, half conscious state was a noise. A very loud, repetitive, obnoxious noise. He _had_ to figure out what it was, it was driving him absolutely crazy.

Groaning, the Just King forced his eyes open, and saw a dank, musty ceiling, attached to a dank, musty dungeon cell. To complete the morbid picture, Caspian was repeatedly smashing his foot against the bars of the cell, shouting forcefully with each kick. So _that_ was the noise… and then he realized his head hurt because the salvers had knocked him completely unconscious as the two Kings had been separated from the Queens. Edmund had struggled like a madman, attempting to reach his sisters. His sisters who… could be just about anywhere at that point. Edmund felt panic rising inside his chest, more so for his older sister than his younger one. Lucy was not ugly by any means, but Susan was… stunningly beautiful, and a serious temptation for any man. And judging by the force Caspian was using in his attempts to knock the door down, the same thought had crossed his mind regarding his wife.

Caspian noticed Edmund sit up from the floor out of the corner of his eye. Giving the door one last powerful kick, he gave up temporarily on his efforts and went to see if his brother was alright. Edmund blinked incoherently as Caspian crouched down next to him.

"Alright?" Caspian asked. Edmund attempted a scowl.

"Guess." the Just King grunted as he rose up from the floor. Caspian sighed, giving his brother a little help to get the whole way off the cold, dank ground. Then, glancing at Edmund one last time, returned to his task of attempting to beat the door down. To say it was completely fruitless was a complete understatement, but Edmund didn't want to hurt his friend's feelings. He even kicked the door a few times himself, in the vain hope that it would make Caspian less stressed. Eventually, the older king let loose a loud, wordless shout, abandoning the door and sitting in the middle of the cell, his head in his hands.

"It is hopeless." he lamented. Edmund glanced at the surprisingly sturdy door one last time, then moved to sit next to Caspian.

"It's never hopeless, Cas. We just… need a miracle." Edmund said. Caspian glared at him.

"Yes, because we have so many of those just lying about." he retorted, turning his hateful gaze on the bars trapping them there… keeping him from his wife. He feared for her safety and her honor, he really did… Then, almost as if the universe wanted to prove the High King wrong, the sound of quickly moving feet could be heard beyond their cell. The two kings jumped up immediately, poised for a fight, when a most unexpected person came bustling around the corner. Caspian's jaw dropped in shock. The man held a finger to his lips, signaling for them to remain quiet while he babbled to himself.

"Insanity, complete insanity. Risking my life, limb, position, everything over a boy who _looks_ like the king! Insanity…!" he mumbled, inserting a key into the lock and throwing the door open. Caspian could remain silent no longer.

"Lord Bern?" he asked, incredulous. The mans head snapped up, looking Caspian full in the face. He looked as though he'd seen a ghost. Regaining his composure, the older man finally answered the Telmarine King.

"Maybe, once. But that was many years ago. Now I'm just Bern, husband to Milly, father to my two daughters. And you… you remind me of someone I once knew. A King of Narnia, who died many years ago. It is what prompted this rather unexpected rescue." he finally replied. Caspian's whole face lit up.

"That man, was my father." he said evenly. The ex-Lord looked like he might have possibly had a heart attack.

"Caspian? Little Prince Caspian?" Bern finally sputtered, unbelieving of what he was seeing. Caspian moved cautiously through the open door, getting a good look at the man. He was definitely Lord Bern, just a few years older than Caspian remembered him.

"Not so little anymore. And not the Prince anymore, either. I am the High King of Narnia now." Caspian replied. Bern blinked a few time rapidly, then fell to his knees.

"Your Majesty! How… however did you manage to defeat Miraz and take back the throne? How, what, how…" he began rambling again. Caspian crouched down next to Bern, helping him back into a standing position.

"All in good time, my Lord. For now, we must hurry. The slavers who imprisoned myself and King Edmund here have the rest of our family. And I… worry for my wife's safety." Caspian said, pain flashing across his expression. The Lord turned to lay eyes on Edmund for the first time.

"King Edmund? Edmund… the Just? From the Golden Age of Narnia? How…?" Bern started, but Edmund cut him off.

"All in due time, we promise. Firstly, we need to rescue Susan and Lucy. Now." Edmund added hastily. Caspian nodded in response to his brother, and together, they followed Lord Bern back out of the dungeon, to a rooftop overlooking the town square… where the 'market' was taking place.

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><p>"Alright girlies, big smiles." one of the slave traders said to the two Queens of Narnia, giving them a thumbs up. Susan scowled at him, and Lucy followed her elders sister's example. They'd been in the 'possession' of the traders for several hours, and had been made to sit in the back of a cart, and wait their turns at the market. Now, the queens (as well as a rather distraught Eustace), along with the ten or so other people that had been in the cart with them, were standing at the back of the stage, and one at a time were presented to the crowd. Who then bid on them. Susan shuddered, closing her eyes for a moment. She'd been lucky so far; none of the disgusting slave traders had tried anything with her yet. But the Gentle Queen had a horrid feeling that this luck was not meant to last…<p>

"Now, we have _this_ lovely young lady!" the announcer shouted. In the blink of an eye, the trader minding Susan and Lucy suddenly lifted the Little Queen off her feet, and stuck her roughly on a little pedestal, so her potential 'buyers' could get a good look at her. Susan let loose a wordless cry, not wanting to be separated form her precious little sister. Lucy glanced back and Susan once, horror and sadness in her eyes, until she was made to face forwards.

"I bid fifty!" one man in the crowd shouted.

"One hundred!"

"Two hundred, for the little lady!"

"Two fifty!"

"Three!"

"Four hundred!" was the last bid made on the youngest queen. A wooden sign bearing the word 'sold' was hung around her neck, and Lucy was shoved off to one side, to be prepared to go meet her new 'master'. Susan took in an unsteady breath. She was next.

"And here we have a _stunningly_ beautiful lady! Most beautiful women this island has ever seen! Anyone care to take her off our hands?" the announcer shouted. There was a whole lot of ruckus following Susan's placement on the pedestal. The whole crowd of men rushed forward, wanting to get a good look at her. Even clad in men's clothes, it was immediately evident how beautiful the oldest queen really was. Amidst the shouting of random amounts of money, and the grubby, disgusting hands that were trying to grab at her, Susan heard one voice rise above the others. A voice she was more than happy to recognize.

"I'll take them off your hands… I'll take them all off your hands!" came the voice of Reepicheep. A second later, about three quarters of the men surrounding the slave stage shed their cloaks, revealing themselves to be the crew of the _Dawn Treader_. Susan almost cried out in relief.

"FOR NARNIA!" they all started to shout, attacking both the slavers and the men attempting to buy themselves human beings as property.

"FOR NARNIA!" came another, heartbreakingly familiar voice. Susan's head snapped up, looking towards the roof of a building overlooking the square. A massive grin spit her face as she watched her husband swing down into the square on a rope, taking out a slaver she hadn't noticed was sneaking up behind her. A wide grin split Caspian's face as well when his eyes found his wife's.

"Caspian." She choked out, slamming herself into him. Caspian's arms wound themselves around her waist, pulling her even closer to him.

"Susan. Are you alright?" he murmured in her ear. She was surprised she was able to hear him through the riot the crew was causing. Some of the Lone Islanders who had been hiding out in their homes (trying to avoid being made slaves) had even joined in the fight, assisting the Narnian's the best the could.

"Fine, I'm fine. Just… get me out of these ropes, and we can talk later." she replied. Caspian nodded seriously, removing his recovered dagger from his belt, and slicing the chord that had Susan's hands bound together. He pursed his lips at the sight of her wrists, and a hot, angry fire ignited behind his eyes. Susan hadn't noticed how bruised they were… Suddenly remembering her little sister, Susan's head snapped in the direction of Lucy. She was fairing just fine, Reepicheep having seemingly cut her binds, and she was currently beating the hell out of one of the slavers with a rather large book.

"Here. Why don't we show this slave trading scum what it really means to take on the Kings and Queens of Narnia." Caspian said, handing her the dagger he had just used to cut her loose. Susan smiled up and her husband, giving him one quick kiss on the lips before leaping off the stage, Caspian at her side, into the battle below.

"Good to see you sister! Everything went well on your end, I suppose?" Edmund shouted, from his position tangled up with one of the slavers. He dropped him a moment later with no trouble.

"Just fine, thank you Ed. Have you seen Eustace? He was here just a moment ago!" Susan called back. Edmund made a face at her, turning his attention momentarily away from his sister to an attacker. After successfully dispatching of him, the Just King rolled his eyes.

"Why on earth would I care about where Eustace is? Good bloody riddance." Edmund retorted. Susan shook her head at her younger brother, turning her own attentions back to the fight. It wasn't fifteen minutes later that the Kings and Queens, along with the _Dawn Treader's_ crew, had dispatched of or subdued all the slave traders and their men, and were taking part in an impromptu parade through the streets of Narrowhaven.

They made their way to the offices of the Governor of the Lone Islands. He was a greedy, selfish man, and at first was in utter denial that the High King of Narnia stood before him. Eventually, Caspian managed to have him taken out of office, placing Lord Bern in his place, making the old Lord Duke of the Lone Islands. Slaving was made illegal on all three of the Islands, as it was in any territory belonging to Narnia, and in Narnia itself. Gumpas (for that was the ex-Governors name) was made to pay back all the tribute owed to Narnia over the years from his own pocket, and force to work as an unpaid servant in the house of the newly appointed Duke. It was only after this that Caspian finally addressed the issue of the slavers themselves, and their unlawful and brutal treatment of Narnian Royalty.

The royal party made their way back from the Governors house to the town square, where the situated themselves up on the stage, flanked by the entire crew of the _Dawn Treader_. It was at this point Caspian finally allowed himself to be truly angry about the whole ordeal; the disgusting men not only man handled himself, but knocked his brother unconscious, mistreated his little sister, and did Aslan-knows-what to his wife. His WIFE. The edges of the world flared up in a red color at that thought.

"All your lives are forfeit this day, for laying hands on our royal persons. Especially for the mistreatment of the Queens of Narnia." Caspian said, his voice ringing across the square. The slavers had the good sense to keep quiet. Despite trying to act calmly, even a blind man could see the anger rolling off the High King in waves. "However, you were unaware of our true identities, and therefore cannot be held responsible for your ignorance. No matter how badly I would like to. On the bright side, I do posses the power to punish each and every one of you for the unlawful, inhuman buying and selling of slaves that has occurred on these islands. From this day forth, all men found guilty of slaving will act as an unpaid servant in the house of the Duke, working off your debt to society, and to Narnia." Caspian added, causing the crowd of citizens to erupt into cheers. The Telmarine King let out a shaky breath, turning away from the crow and walking back to his family. Edmund clapped him on the back.

"You did well, brother. It was the right thing to do." he said. Caspian gave him a half smile. Susan walked up to him next, wrapping her arms around him and pressing her face against his chest.

"I'm proud of you, darling. I know it wasn't easy, but you truly did do the right thing." she said softly. Caspian smiled down at her, placing a kiss on the top of her head before wrapping his arms around her as well.

"Come, we should be getting back to the ship. I have no desire to spend the night on this island." Caspian finally said, releasing all of his wife but her hand, and together they led their family and the crew back to the ship. They intended to stay anchored in the shallows of Doorn for a few more days, restocking supplies and cleaning up the ship a bit, until heading off into uncharted waters. And he supposed they should probably try and locate Eustace as well…

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><p><strong>AN: Well, there you go. Chapter... 6, I believe, done and in the vault. Not my favorite chapter, but what are you gonna do? The next chapter will almost completely take place on board the _Dawn Treader_, just so you all are aware of what's coming. There was a bunch of excellently funny moments that happened in the film before the royals landed on the Lone Islands, and I'm really upset that I missed them. So, I moved them all to the chapter after this one, on the way to the Magician's Island. Reepicheep's little song about the Utter East will be in the next chapter as well. So, what did everyone think? Send me a review, I will try my best to get back to you! I'm still discovering this new way of review replying, hahaha :)  
><strong>


	7. A Duel At Sea

**A/N: *peaks timidly out fron underneath rock she's been hiding under* Um, hi. So, I finally updated. FINALLY. I, at last, found the motication to finish this chapter. Shich I finished. Yay... Yeah. So, about this one: it's very Eustace-centric. So, my Eusatce fans will be very pleased. As well, I did a lot of... lets call it borrowing in this chapter. The first half of it is my own imagination, but the back half is literally word-for-word dialouge from the movie. How lazy, I know. Can't even write my own scenes anymore. But, I loved Eusate and Reepicheep's fight from the movie, and I had some people request it, so I HAD to put it in. Also, Reep's song about the Utter East FINALLY makes its appearance. I kinda screwed up on that one, not going to lie. It was supposed to be in, like, chapter three. OH, and another thing, for those of you who have not read chapter four in a while (and I can't really blame you), Reep and Eustace have their first altercation in that chapter, and it involves Eustace swinging Reepicheep around by the tail. Needless to say, it kind of ticked Reep off... so, just keep that in mind as you read this terriably delayed chapter :)**

**Disclaimer: Normally, I wouldn't add this hear. I have a mass one in the very first chapter. But, I did A LOT of dialouge stealing in this chappie, so I thought I'd add an extra one for good measure... I DO NOT own the Chronicles of Narnia, the books OR the films. Especially not the films, which are owned by 20th Century Fox and Walden Media. I am not profiting in ANY WAY from their movie, as I just borrowed a TON of dialouge for my worthless, completely profitless fanfiction**

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><p>"It is about bloody time you lot turned up! I've been trying for ages to get this stupid oar to work in this unstable, dangerous little boat, I was attacked by a man I suspect may be a member of the misinformed British counsel, and I'm STARVING!" Eustace began complaining the very moment Susan and Caspian were within his sights. Edmund sighed loudly behind them, and Lucy tried very hard not to laugh.<p>

"And to think, I was actually worried about him." Susan muttered. Caspian snorted.

"My love, you are so very caring of everyone and everything, you would be worried if a Beetle went missing." he replied. Susan elbowed him lightly in the ribs, and they both laughed. This caused Eustace to look all the more upset.

"Well, looks like you fools had a grand old time! While I was stuck here, almost being murdered, and I barely made it out of that… that… BRAWL alive!" he shouted, even though Caspian was standing right beside him, helping his wife into one of the long boats.

"Eustace, if you had stayed where I could see you, you would have been just fine. We will look out for you, don't worry." Susan said, in the most soothing voice she could muster. He was really beginning to test her patience, and the Gentle Queen possessed A LOT of patience. Eustace grumbled a bit, seemingly unable to argue his elder cousins logic. He climbed gracelessly into the boat, and sat rigidly at the bow, staring blankly at the water. Susan grew concerned after he remained this way, unmoving and silent, for the entire boat ride back to the ship.

He stumbled out of the longboat, refusing any assistance as usual, grumbled something about being tired after such a traumatizing ordeal, and then promptly made his way to the cabin he shared with Edmund, slamming the door loud enough to be heard on the upper deck. His behavior had now caught everyone's attention, and the entire royal family seemed properly worried about the boy. Even Edmund seemed concerned for the boy, even though he went out of his way to irritate the youngest King.

"He seems… disturbed. That feels like the right word." The Just King finally said, breaking the silence between the royals.

"I'd expect so. This place, this world, it goes against everything and anything he's ever believed in and known. I honestly can say I was expecting worse when he first turned up." Lucy replied, to which Susan nodded in agreement.

"I was too. I mean, he's been awful, but not as awful as one would expect from Eustace. Someone should go talk to him." Susan said. They all turned to look at her.

"I'm not doing it, he hates me. And he won't listen to Lu, he still considers her his 'little' cousin. And he doesn't even know Caspian." Edmund said. Susan sighed in defeat.

"Fine, fine, I'll go. But keep in mind, I can't be held accountable for my actions if he starts insulting my husband. Again." she said, turning on the spot, and marching off to the royal cabins.

"Better her than me." Edmund shrugged, making his way up to the navigation deck.

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><p>Susan slowed her determined walk as she neared the cabin Eustace shared with her younger brother. As much as she worried for the boy, she was also wary of him. Not that he scared her, by any means, but he could be right foul at times, and sometimes it was upsetting, the things he said. She tried not to let it get to her, but jibes about her family left in England and her husband were starting to become too much, even for the Gentle Queen to handle. She sighed heavily as she knocked on the cabin door.<p>

"Get away!" was the response she received from the distraught boy within. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Susan opened the door. She was met by a pillow, missing her face by a few inches. Eustace looked surprised to see her standing there. He probably was expecting Edmund.

"Hello, Eustace." Susan said evenly, stooping down to pick up the pillow-projectile, brushing some dirt off it.

"Hello cousin. I… wasn't expecting you." he replied, sticking his nose in the little journal he seemed to carry around absolutely everywhere. Susan placed the pillow back on the bed, and stood awkwardly next to it. Eustace held an unusually ridged posture, seemingly just as uncomfortable as she was.

"You seemed… upset in the longboat. Is anything wrong?" Susan finally said, getting straight to the point. Eustace turned to look at her, and for a moment, appeared to be a scared, confused boy in a place he didn't understand, rather than his usual bratty self.

"Of course something is 'wrong'. I almost died on that island. Twice. In this ridiculous place that shouldn't exist and that I don't understand. With you people, you Pevensie's. Of all the places I could have ended up, I landed in a place that shouldn't exist, with my stupid, stupid, missing, stupid cousins." he replied, his frightened expression slowly morphing back into a sneer. Susan seized her chance while she still had it. She sat down next to him quickly, placing a hand on his skinny shoulder.

"Eustace, it's okay! We're here for you, we're your family. Even Edmund. I promise we can get you through this so you'll enjoy your stay here in Narnia, but only if you let us." she said, giving him a little squeeze. Eustace brushed her hand off his shoulder, giving her the rude sneer she was used to seeing. Her moment to get through to him was over. For now.

"Why would I want your help? You Pevensie's have been nothing but a massive thorn in my side, both at home in England, and here in this ridiculous place. I don't need it, and I don't want it." he replied, turning away from her, and sticking his nose back into that little black book. Susan sighed again, rose from the bed, and exited the cabin, silently admitting defeat. Maybe there was no getting through to the boy. Perhaps she should send in Lucy next time.

Susan made her way back up onto the main deck, looking for a friendly face. Edmund was playing chess with Indigo, while Reepicheep was attempting to give the Telmarine swordsmen some advice. All the advice in the world wouldn't help much in a match against the younger Pevensie brother. Lucy was at the bow, watching the horizon with a faun and a Telmarine crewman, and Caspian… was on the navigation deck with Drinian, trying to make a decision as to where they would travel next. They intended to cast off from the Lone Islands tomorrow or the day after, and everyone on board was hyperaware that they were about to sail into utterly uncharted water.

The Gentle Queen of Narnia made her way up the ornate wooden stairwell on the deck, taking a place silently next to her husband, observing some vaguely familiar charts and maps. They were old, very old. Probably from the Golden Age, which would explain why they seemed so familiar. Caspian glanced over at her a few moments after she arrived, smiling when he realized who it was.

"Love. How was your… chat, with Eustace?" he asked, adding something to a nearly blank chart she hadn't noticed before. Caspian seemed to be making a more updated version of the old maps.

"It went as expected. Badly. I truly wonder if I, or anyone for that matter, will ever get through to that boy." she replied, shaking her head, and taking the pen from her husband's hand, corrected something on the newer map. He had misspelled the name of the capital of the Lone Islands. Spelling, as well as math, had never been Caspian's strong suits. He was much better with a sword, or even a crossbow.

"Well, I have no right to confirm nor deny that, darling. I can only hope he will become more agreeable as this journey proceeds. He agitates the crew on occasion, especially when they catch him skulking around the ration storage rooms." Caspian replied, glancing down onto the main deck. Everything was peaceful at the moment, thankfully. Susan wasn't sure she could handle an inter-personal crisis at the moment. Not after what they had all just been through.

"I sincerely agree. If he doesn't, I fear my brother may toss him overboard when no one is looking." she replied, extracting a chuckle out of Caspian, who then slid his arm around her shoulders, pulling her in close for a quick kiss on the forehead. Leaving one arm around her, he used his free hand to continue working on the charts. Susan helped whenever necessary, and it was… wonderful. It was a calm, peaceful moment, one the High King and Queen of New Narnia rarely ever received. Between running a country, exploring unknown lands and the enemies that seemed to appear around every corner, it was a wonder they had any time to themselves at all. So, they relished in the quiet moment together, hoping for more of them as they moved on, into uncharted waters.

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><p>All (surprisingly) remained quiet for the rest of their time docked off the shores of Narrowhaven, and for their first two days back at sea. They had re-supplied, and were poised to be able to survive up to three months without having to make another stop, though no one had the desire to be on the water that long in uncharted seas. And the rations only promised to hold up that long assuming no one ate more than they were permitted. Which no one would ever dream of doing, save for one, single 'crewmember'. And he was caught, red-handed, on the third day back at sea.<p>

Eustace was sulking again; embarrassed after being caught talking to a bird that apparently could not talk back. How was he supposed to know that! Every bloody thing in this bizarre world seemed to be able to talk. Even the trees, if his cousin Lucy's word was to be held true. So, to make himself feel better, he resorted to his favorite pastime on this hideous voyage: sneaking rations. He never at with the rest of them, as he never liked what was being served. Fish and a bit of broccoli indeed. He preferred oranges. In fact, Eustace LOVED oranges. But they were supposed to 'save' them. Save them for what? Poppycock. Eustace wanted an orange, and he was getting one.

What he didn't count on was someone following him to the storage deck.

Eustace moved below, minding the crewmen just at the other end of the room. He scurried quickly across the open space, into the area where the rations were kept, looking around swiftly for the basket of oranges. He spotted it quickly, and shoved an orange down his shirt. He was about to make his leave when he heard it. That _voice_.

"Are you aware that stealing rations is a capital offence at sea?" Reepicheep asked, causing Eustace to jump and turn around quickly, knocking over some cookware in the process. He looked around confused, until the rat spoke again, "Up. Here."

"You." Eustace spat, turning away from the horrid mouse-thing. Reep made a sound of disbelief, and cut him off.

"Men have been killed for less!" he exclaimed.

"For what?" Eustace inquired.

"For treason! And sneakiness! And, general nuisancery… look, just hand over the orange and we'll let the matter pass." Reepicheep replied. Eustace made his reply quickly and without properly thinking it through.

"I don't know what you're talking about." He said, turning to leave again.

"Allow me to… HUH!" Reepicheep exclaimed, for Eustace had just taken hold of his tail. For the second time this voyage. You would have thought the boy would've learned from the last time.

"Look, I've had quite enough of you…" Eustace began, seemingly oblivious to the fact that he was offending Reepicheep horrendously. Again.

"Unhand the tail," Reepicheep said in a deadly quiet voice, drawing his rapier, causing Eustace to jump, "the Great Aslan Himself gave me this tail, no one, repeat, _no one_, touches the tail. Period. Exclamation mark." Reep added menacingly.

"Sorry!" Eustace said quickly. Reepicheep rose slightly from his defensive stance, in response to this surprising apology.

"Now," the mouse said, "I will have the orange, then I will have satisfaction!" He added, flipping Eustace a rather large knife with his tail, and brandishing his sword again.

"Please, please I'm a pacifist…!" Eustace started, but Reepicheep cut him off.

"EN-GUARD!" the bravest mouse in Narnia shouted, waving his sword in Eustace's face. And in response… Eustace ran away, up the stairwell, to the main deck. Then he ran straight into Tavros. He was in such a rush to escape Reepicheep, he didn't even remember to panic about the imposing minotaur. Eustace managed to run into a few more people on the main deck before Reep finally caught up with him, swinging on a loose bit of rope to land in front of the boy.

"Trying to run away? We're on a boat, you know." he teased.

"Can't we just discuss this?" Eustace stammered, looking for an easy way out. In response, Reepicheep sliced open his shirt.

"_That_ was for stealing," Reep added, "_That_ was for lying," he continued, skewering the orange on the end of his sword, "And _THAT_ was for good measure!" he concluded, hitting Eustace in the face with his own stolen goods. This, for lack of a better word, startled Eustace into action, as he jimmied the knife in his hands a few times, and attempted to take a swing at Reep

"Ah ha! That's more like it!" the mouse shouted, dodging the attack easily, flipping over Eustace's head, "We have ourselves a duel! Catch!" he added, flinging the orange off the end of his sword. Drinian caught it easily in his hand, a slightly bored, irritated, yet amused expression on the captain's face.

"Now, come on, take your best shot," Reep teased. Eustace gave the mouse his best attempt at a scowl, and swung wildly at him several times. "Is that it? Come on boy," Reep jibbed, effortlessly moving out of reach every time Eustace swung, "Stop flapping your wings like a drunken pelican! Poise!" Reepicheep exclaimed, seemingly exasperated with Eustace's sad attempt at swordplay. "Keep your blade up," the mouse added, deciding he may as well give the boy a lesson, since his skills were certainly lacking, "Up! That's it. Now," he added, leaping up easily over Eustace's jab, flipping over his head and crawling down the boys back. A crowd was starting to gather on the deck, to enjoy the spectacle. "Yoo Woo! Over here!" Reepicheep called, from his new position on the other side of the ship, "Now, lunge with your foot! Not the left, the RIGHT!" Reep chastised, leaping onto the floor, hitting Eustace's legs with the hilt of his sword, "Got it? Come on," he added, jumping back up onto the edge of the ship, "Be nimble, be nimble! It's a dance boy! A dance!" he said, moving his feet quickly on the spot to demonstrate the fact. Lunging with his feet Eustace gave it another attempt. Reepicheep easily dodged all his attacks, but shouted encouragement at this new improvement in Eustace's 'skills', "Again, and again! That's right! Yes, righ… Oh, OH, OH NOOO!" Reep shouted, seemingly falling off the edge of the deck, into the water below. Eustace leaned over the edge, looking around both concerned and curious as to where the mouse had gone. As he was turned about, Reepicheep appeared menacingly over his shoulder, clinging to the rigging leading up to the crow's nest, "Aaaaaaaaaaaand, THAT," he shouted, tapping Eustace on the shoulder with his tail so he turned around, allowing the valiant mouse to kick him in the back, "Is that!" he added in triumph, knocking the boy into a collection of baskets and blankets on deck. The crew broke out into applause and laughter, especially the Royal family, who found the whole matter exceedingly entertaining.

"Splendid, Reep. Someone had to teach him a lesson in humility." Edmund chortled, patting the mouse on the back. Lucy was giggling, and Susan and Caspian were trying to hide smiles at the boy's expense. Eustace, on the other hand, scrambled about on the floor, picked up his kitchen knife, and just happened to walk past where his previous adversary was standing.

"Good match. I'll make a swordsman of you yet." Reepicheep complimented. And for a moment, Eustace actually smiled, seemingly accepting this bit of praise from the mouse. Then he realized exactly what he was doing, and recovered as quickly as he could.

Yes, well, if the playing field were a little more even… would have been an entirely different result." He stammered out, walking away to the sound of Reepicheep chuckling.

"Indeed." he replied.

* * *

><p>The following morning, Lucy was up early, taking a stroll on the main deck. Her brothers were aft, assisting Captain Drinian with navigation, and Susan was below, having insisted on helping the cooks with breakfast.<p>

Lucy walked about aimlessly, until she heard some very soft singing, coming from the bow…

_"Where sky and water meet,_

_Where the waves grow ever sweet_

_Doubt not, you Reepicheep,_

_To find all that you seek,_

_There is the Utter East,_

_Doubt not,…"_

"That's pretty!" Lucy said, causing Reepicheep to stop singing and jump a tad.

"Oh, thank you," he said, upon realizing who it was that had interrupted him, "A dryad sung it to me when I was just a mousling. I can't define the meaning, but I've never forgotten the words."

"What do you think's past the Lone Islands Reep? Besides all this open sea?" Lucy inquired.

"Well, I'm told the furthest East one can sail is to the End of the World. Aslan's Country. But you already knew that, didn't you?" he added, and Lucy smiled, nodding in response.

"Do you really believe there's such a place?" she asked him. The mouse smiled at her.

"Well, we have nothing, if not belief." He replied, and Lucy smiled, her smile fading slightly as she thought of something else.

"Do you think you can actually sail there?" she asked, more timidly this time. Concerned.

"Well, there is only one way of finding that out. I can only hope I will one day earn the right to see it… Your Majesty." He concluded, turning and heading back out to the very end of the bow, leaving Lucy to contemplate his words. It was only moments later that someone was shouting down from the crow's nest,

"LAND HO!"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: See what I mean? SO lazy. And so much stealing from multi-million dollar corporations... if only I actually worked for them... ANYWAY, send me a review. It's really easy. ANd then I know if anyone liked this VERY late chapter. ANd it alos inspires me to keep writting. Seriously, I LOVE hearing from all of you! Tell me what you thought!**


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